


The promise.

by delicatelingon



Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:01:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22222216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/delicatelingon/pseuds/delicatelingon
Summary: I just have a few ideas about what happened after Rio got shot.This is my second story on the theme.
Relationships: Beth Boland/Rio
Comments: 16
Kudos: 72





	1. The promise

_If you dream of me  
Like I dream of you  
In a place that's warm and dark  
In a place where I can feel the beating of your heart _

The Promise, Tracy Chapman

To say that Rio was pissed were an understatement. Somehow he’d managed to bribe enough people, with enough money, to make the court case go away. It helped that it turned out that agent Turner was a loose cannon, that he already had been hanging on by a thread.

  
Ironically, what had saved Rio in the end, was that agent Turner had gone after Elizabeth.  
A seemingly innocent suburban housewife that had made the unfortunate decision to pick up Rio for a one- day stand, Gretchen had explained to him.

  
When she had told agent Turner, on record, that she was hurt and angry after finding out that her husband had cheated on her.  
Deciding to drown her sorrows in bourbon at a random bar after school drop, only to start talking to Rio. Inviting him back home, letting him screw her on the kitchen table, on top of the remains of the kids breakfast.  
That made him smirk when Gretchen had told him, with a raised eyebrow.

  
The agents that had examined Turners case couldn’t find anything that linked Beth to Rio in anyway. That night that Rio had been shot, it had all landed-on agent Turner, who had in turn been stripped of his rank reduced to be an errand boy for all foreseeing future.

It had taken Rio months to recover from surgery, getting his strength back, to breath without pain.  
His affairs had come to a standstill, they weren’t completely shut down, they had been closed for business for the first two months. Then four more months it took him to no longer look like a dead guy (or wounded guy) walking.  
He had payed so much money to make it all go away that he could feel the shortage of the cash. But as soon as he could, and the FBI had let him, he’d taken Marcus with him on a month-long trip to Mexico.  
Getting some color back on his skin, swimming and regaining more muscle strength.

  
  
Rhea had been anything but pleased about that, pulling Marcus from school for a month, especially since the 6 months it had taken Rio look like himself.  
Marcus needed stability, for things to go back to normal she’d told him.  
He had started to wet the bed when Rio got shot, plagued by nightmares and their normally well-behaved boy had gotten in more than one fight in school.

  
  
So here he was, in a secluded area with his son, homeschooling him a few hours every day, in the evenings having dinner with friends and family.  
Even if the only reason Rio was spending a month in Mexico with his son, it felt good to have Marcus around Rios old friends and family members, as he himself had spent most of his summers as a kid in Mexico.

He talked ta Dags on a daily base, who in turn delegated the orders to the next guy in the command chain who then delegated, and so on. They were still laying low, but he needed the income, he needed to keep the other gangs at bay, and he just needed shit to get done.  
It wasn’t ideal to tail of to Mexico, but he’d make it work.

He kept tabs on Elizabeth, her presence was everywhere, considering she’d marked him with three bullets.  
To say he was beyond furious when Rhea and Marcus showed up at the hospital talking about a Beth, was an understatement. Marcus had said,

“Remember miss Beth, dad?”

  
It might be a completely coincidence, meeting her at the park, but that didn’t stop him from calling Dags the second his ex- wife and son had walked out of the hospital room to order a hit on her.  
He hadn’t reacted that strongly when he had come to it in the hospital bed, bud coming near his son?  
He was having none of it.  
  
Whatever they had been sketching the outsides of, it had all ended that night. His soft spot for that suburban housewife with blue doe eyes and shitty husband were gonna’ get what was coming for her.

  
  
It was pure luck when Dags called him the next day, having spent the previous few days in Canada, driving straight to her.  
Telling him he was outside where she worked, telling him he was ready. He normally didn’t call to confirm, but Rio didn’t order hits on housewives.  
Dags was not aware that she had been the one putting three bullets in Rios chest, to anyone who asked, he’d tell them it’d been Turner.

  
Rio had told him to stand down. Instead to put some guys on them, to trail them and find out everything they were up to.  
A week later Dags had showed up with a report on the three ladies.

Being back home, resurrecting, he was aware of the rumors on the streets. Some said he had been killed and Dags had taken over, some said he was out for good. It’d turned bloody, the world he lives in, it's kill or be killed. Being away for so long, the vultures saw their chances.

He hadn’t read Dags rapport straight away, not knowing if wanted to know what they were up to. A need to decide, if he read the file, did that imply he couldn’t cut her out? But he kept tabs on all his enemies.

  
  
Learning that she was part owner in a craft- stationary- book- café had surprised him, he had taken the money back, how had she managed to afford that?  
Divorced it’d said in the file, a new address listed as her home address. He barely glanced at her friend and sister, her sister was working nights at fancy hotel as a valet, her friend was doing nails and braids at a saloon.  
It seemed harmless enough.  
When funny money started to make its way to his periphery, he knew exactly where to turn to.

He knew how to make and entrance, understanding the psychology on the human mind, making others perceive him the way he wanted them to.

Sending a bullet in the mail might be a bit cliché, but he knew it would get the desired affect he wanted.

The second one he took his time with, he wanted her just to think nothing would come of it. Then when she was doing a grocery run, he waited until she was in the store, placing one on the dashboard of her car.  
Staking her out in his car, watching her pale face as she gasped. Gingerly picking up the bullet, stepping out of her car glancing around, as Rio sunk further down in his seat, before she sped off.

He waited with the third one, it would be the last one he sent her way. Sneaking in her house one day as he knew she would be at work, he had one of his guys keeping tabs on her throughout the day. He placed it in the sugar puff cereal, knowing one of her kids would find it. It felt fitting, fucking with her over breakfast.

When he’d been to her place, just this one time, he’d taken his time. Looking through her draws, finding all her secrets, getting to know her in a way he hadn’t before, when he had been respecting her privacy, to some degree at least.  
He found a colored coded schedule that he snapped pictures of, he wouldn’t have given it a second glance if he hadn’t found it her closet under the linens. Searching her bedside-table he found her plaything and some expensive lotion, he took just to spite her.

  
Then he waited.


	2. Picking up the pieces

It was late, he was having a formal meeting, standing in a warehouse owned by one of his shell corporations, discussing with a potential business partner about his connections in the art world.  
Nothing too big of a job, but forging paintings was he was thinking of doing next, when he was flipping his game.  
It makes for a longer wait on the profit, however the profit was big. He still had some pills coming across border, he’d started printing money again, but he hadn’t found a safe enough way to wash it.

The room was already buzzing with energy, he felt the energy change, he could feel the anger and fear radiate off her. Like he had done before in another warehouse, he ignored her. Letting her stand behind him and fume.  
It wasn’t until she stepped between the him and the man he was talking to, that he acknowledged her.  
  
He grabbed her face forcefully with one hand, she had found him quicker then he thought she would, and truth be told, he hadn’t expected her to show up here.

Still holding on to her face as both of her hands came up to grip at his arm, trying to break free.  
The man who he had been speaking to looked uncomfortable, the rest of his crew might have glanced at their direction, but knew better then getting involved.

“Fuck you” she hissed.

“No thank you.”

Letting go of her slowly, he had nearly pushed her up on her tiptoes as he grabbed her, getting her on his eye level, he let her find her footing.  
She looked better than the last time he saw her, when her eyes had been red from crying.  
Strawberry blond hair, a snug dark blue sweater and black form fitted jeans.

He looked behind him and hollered, “Dags!”  
When he could see he had his attention, “See Mrs Boland to her car.”

Facing her again he said, “I’ll come find you when I’ve got the time.”

She was shuffling her weight from foot- to- foot, “It’s Miss Marks now.” Then she raised her chin again and squared up, “Don’t ever fucking threaten my children again.”

Then Dags was there, escorting her towards her car again.

Letting a few days pass before he showed up unannounced with Dags in tow, as she was hosting “book club” at her house.  
Her new house was smaller, but he found that it suited her better, letting himself and Dags in through the front door, announcing his arrival.

“Honey, I’m home!”

He sauntered in like he owned the place, he could see her sister swallow and her friends eyes begin to prickle with tears.  
They were seated at the table in her kitchen with wine in there glasses. Picking up his keys from his pocket, along with his wallet and placing it in the ceramic bowl at the counter. Then he got his gun that was tucked at his waistline placing it on top of his wallet. Hearing a gasp as he did.

Turning to Elizabeth with a smile on his lips, “What, no hello kiss?”

Dags had followed Rio and was now resting his back against the wall, with his gun in his hands.

“Why are you here?”

Forcing a harsh laugh out, “Why do you think?” He threw the question back at her.

“What do you want?”

He could see tears form in her eyes. So he stepped closer, and stroked her cheek up to her eye, he stroked one of her eyes softly with his thumb as she closed it, then the other, catching her tears before they fell.

Taking a step back he said, “You’re all coming back to work.” He took his time to look each of them in the eye until they nodded, excepting.

Picking up his gun and placing it back at his waist underneath his black jeans, putting his wallet in his back pocket and his keys in his front one.

He and Dags strolled out the way they came, with a final “See you soon, mami.”

They were all quiet, frozen, until they knew he would be out of earshot, it was Annie who broke the silence.

“Oh god, oh god, oh god. I can’t die, I’m to young, I mean, you’re all older than me, you lived your life, but me? I’m just a baby.”

“Fuck.”

“Fuck?” Now it was Rubys turn to react. “That’s all you can say? Gangfriend is literally forcing us to go back to work for him.”

“We’ll find away. We always find away.” Even to her own ears she could hear the insecurity.

Not wasting anytime, the next day Beth was at work, I young guy with tattoos came up to the register, to order a coffee and she happily took his order. When he paid, he handed her an envelope, she recognized his scrawling instantly, “Elizabeth”.

She was sure all the color drained from her face, but the guy seemed unfaced.

Working half day that day, it wasn’t until she was sitting in her car that she opened the envelope. Finding a car key, an address with a description of the car and then a second address, presumably where to do the drop.

Later that night, they were all in her mom- van on the way to the pick up, it was decided that Beth would drive the car alone, Ruby and Annie trailing her to pick her up after the drop off.

It went without a hitch, like so many times before.

They didn’t see Rio again, only his guys, stopping by the café to drop of an envelope, with a car key and two addresses. Not receiving a single payment.

Beth was chatting away with her partner of the shop when she recognized one of Rios guys. She excused herself and went to talk his order, but instead of an envelope this time, he told her a time and an address.

As soon as she could, she called Ruby and Annie, letting them now what to expect later that evening.  
They couldn’t have planned for what they found at the address.

“What’s this?” Annie asked, “Did Gangfriend invite us to a party?”

It was in one of the less nice areas of the city, music coming from the house and there were people on the stair and on the front porch, drinking, smoking and laughing.

They all jump when Dags knocked on the window, Beth hadn’t turned off the engine yet, so she rolled down her window to see what he wanted.

“Boss wants you inside.”


	3. Just breathe

The trio hesitantly walked after Dags as he crossed the street to the party, up the stairs and he motioned for them to follow them inside. Most of the people in there was speaking Spanish, Beth recognized a few faces from when they’d dropped of instructions for her.  
Dags walked through the hall to the living room and stopped at the couch, were people were seated, talking, laughing and drinking.

“Move. Boss wants the ladies to wait here.” They all scattered at the mentioning of Rio, without a look to them, he walked out to the hallway and out of sight.

So they sat and waited, barely talking, observing, Beth was clutching her purse tight. It took them an embarrassed amount of time before they realized they were here because Rio was fucking with them.

“This is a powerplay,” Beth concluded, “he says jump and we’re supposed to ask how high?”

“What are we supposed to do?” Annie asked, partying was her thing, but Gangfriend wasn’t.

“Let’s get a drink.” She answered.

“Are you kidding me right now?” Ruby wasn’t in any mood to have a drink, with the risk of setting Gangfriend off.

“Wait here,” Beth stood up and made her way towards the kitchen. She greeted two girls speaking to a few of the guys that she’d met the past weeks.

“I need three beers and something like, tequila, whisky, whatever you’ve got.”

The group looked unimpressed by her, not moving in any direction to get what she wanted.

“Look Rio invited me. Us. Go get it.”  
Putting in her mom voice and raising and eyebrow, the exact way she did to her kids when they were showing an attitude, she stopped and rested her look on guy that she’d met at her shop several times. Giving him a final look that said, “get to it”.

She walked back into the living room with three beers, a bottle of vodka, with a strut in her step. Wiggling her butt in between Annie and Ruby, handing them a beer each, they looked anything but happy, but followed her lead.  
They cheered and took a sip, then Beth was the first to take a swing of the vodka, straight out of the bottle. Feeling the burn down her throat, she took a second one and washed it down with beer.  
Handing it to Annie first, who took a big gulp, and then passing it over to Ruby, who rolled her eyes before taking swig.

  
Ruby coughed a bit afterwards, “You sure this is a good idea?”

“It’s a party, we were invited.” Hoping it would piss Rio of enough to notice her.

They ended up having more than one beer each, they might also have finished the entire bottle of vodka.  
Beth had just returned to the kitchen, demanding more beer and when one young Hispanic guy hesitated, she’d just told him to take it up with Rio. After that it was free beers and no questions asked.

It was when she was in the kitchen, that she caught a glimpse of Rio, that fucker, he was playing cards, laughing, in another room. He disappeared out of sight when Dags walked back in and shut the door.

Giving it sometime and topping up the liquid courage, she decided to go and speak to Rio. Stopping outside the door, she clicked her fingernails at the door in rapid fashion. Dags opened with a blank expression,

“Yeah?”

“Well this was fun, thanks for the invite. We’re going to take off now.”

When she started speaking the room felt silent, she could feel their eyes on her, but she decided to focus on Dags.

“Inside.” That was Rio talking to her.

She stayed in place.

“Inside.”

Dags grabbed her by the elbow and pulled her inside, closing the door. She swayed a bit until she found a focus point on the wall.

Rio snapped his fingers in the air, “Here.” Telling her to look at him.

She focused on his nose, he had a cute nose, pointy, almost dainty.

“Leave.”

Wow, someone was being moody, she turned to leave, when Dags stopped her again, motioning her to Rio, who was pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Not you.”

  
That was enough to make the rest scarper. She felt Dags hesitate, then he left them alone.

“Sit.” He pushed an office chair towards her, she sat down, carefully, clutching her bag. Grabbing her knees, pulling her chair towards him, he placed her between his spread legs, searched her eyes.

  
“Are you drunk?”

She hummed in response.

“I thought Dags told you to wait on the couch.”

“Well he could’ve, honestly, it was such a long time ago I can’t remember” she answered mockingly.

He regarded her for a bit, not seeming to be aware that he’d started to stroke her jeans clad thighs. Beth rarely dared to breath.

“We’ll talk.”

He stood up, went to open the door, “Dags, take the ladies home." 

Sitting down in the chair opposite her again, lost in thought, before he abruptly stands up.

“Lets move.” Motioning for her to follow.

“Where we going?”

Pretending not to have heard her, or just straight up ignoring her, he walks out of the house, opening the passenger door for Beth and closes it.  
Then he walks back to the house, Beth sees him through the window, as he does half-hugs to some of the guys, that look like they are actual friends of his. Flirting with the women, hugging them and making them laugh.

Then he’s back, he slides in his car, turns the engine on and pulls out. They ride in silence for a bit.

“Your friends seem nice.” Beth says as she looks at the passing streetlights.

“Hmm.” He grunts, not wanting to comment.

“So, where we headed?”

“You’ll see.”

He pulls up at a storage unit, punches in digits to have the gate open and parks. Getting out of the car and walking to a side entrance, Beth must hurry to keep up, he takes a key out and lets them in. There is row upon row of storage units and he walks briskly until he finds the one with the right number, using the same key to unlock it before he lets her in.

The room is bara, saved for the one pallet that’s stacked with money. Beth eyes it warily, something tells her she isn’t going to like what Rio has to say.

“This is the last of the funny money”, he shares, “$150 000 that needs to be washed, then I’m flipping my game”.

“That’s a lot of money.” Why has he brought her here, she wonders?

“Yep. You’ve got two weeks.”

“Excuse me?”

“Did I stutter? You’ve got two weeks.” He clenches he’s jaw, he’s so over her bullshit.

“I can’t wash that much money.” She tries to plead.

“Figure it out.”  
  


“It’s impossible.”

That pisses him off and he grabs her by the throat, until she’s pushed against a wall. He’s not squeezing, just holding his hand over his throat, he can tell that her eyes widen and she’s frightened. He applies a little more pressure, not so she can’t breathe, but more so she can feel it, her pulse is steady, and her chest is heaving, like she’s preparing herself.  
Then just as suddenly he lets go.

“I wasn’t asking. Your cut is 20%.”

“For that, hell no.”

“You don’t get it. I own you.”


	4. In the dark

“Fuck you.”

Rio knew he was pushing her hard, but she needed to fall in line, be a good little soldier and do as she’s told.  
Whether it was to wait on the fuckin’ couch or wash his money, her answered should be “Yes, sir.”.

Dropping her of at her car, telling her he’d come see her in two weeks, expecting his money.

Beth was internally freaking out. Trying to keep a cool and composed exterior, knowing Rio could see straight through it.

She climbed in her car and sat there for a bit, trying to come up with a plan, it wasn’t until she noticed Rio watching her, the way he did sometimes, that she turned the ignition.

At first, she didn’t mention it to Ruby or Annie, even when they tried to coax it out of her. Wanting to make her mind up.

She invited them for book club. With wine in their glasses, she said,

“There’s been a development…”

As she drifted off Ruby spoke, “Oh no, not again, what kind of development, who’s up in the tree house?”

She told them what had happened, that they had exactly ten days to clean the cash. Or else…

Laying out her plans, in details, color coded.

“You want us to rob the Cash place, again? I ain’t feeding that dude burritos, plus, do you remember he figured out who I was?” Ruby exclaimed.

“I can’t robe Fine and Frugal, I _worked there Beth.”_ Annie had hissed.

Beth and Ruby just stared at her.

“Again. I can’t robe that place _again_.” Annie glared at them both.

“We’re going to rob them all. Now, we know the ins and out of your Cash place, Ruby.” At which Ruby made a grunting noise.

“And frugals, we’ve robbed that place so many times I basically can do it in my sleep. _We_ could do it our sleep. It’s where we’ll start.”

“Uhu, Nunununu” Ruby declared. “Where we start? And why do we need to rob places, isn’t the problem we got too much money anyway?”

“We're not going to take the money, you know, just exchange it.”

They had to plan fast, they decided to hit “Fine and frugal” in the morning, after school drops, when there would be few customers and mostly stay at home moms. It went expertly, like they had learned a thing or two the previous times.  
  


They hit up Cash place next, Ruby mumbled something “that’s not what it’s called, but whatever”.

  
It went quick, their inside guy let them in, for a cut, exchanging the money. The only problem was that they weren’t close to have washed the right amount of money.

Standing in Beths kitchen counting the money, just as they finished, Rio stepped through the front door with two of his boys, one of them was the Hispanic guy Beth had persuaded the vodka and beer from.  
She smiled sweetly at him and he returned the smile, but after Rio gave him a hard glanced he checked himself, Beth huffed at Rios pettiness.

“So honey, how’s it going?” Rio asked, not being in a partially good mood before he stepped inside her house, finding that it was turning sourer by the minute.  
  


“Well babe,” not letting him intimidate her by calling her sweet names, like he used to.

“So far we’ve managed to clean more than half of it.”

“How much more than half of it?”

From Fine and Frugal they’d managed to replace $55 000 phony with clean, Beth’s arm was soar from hauling in duffel bags with money they were going to replace, switching it. Then have Taylor come in and “scare them off”. He’d done it for free, if he could be the hero.

Just the thought of it made Beth stretch her back and lock her arms behind her lower back, she stopped when Annie not so discreetly coughed, and Beth noticed where everyone in the room had their eyes zeroed in.  
She rolled her eyes.

Turning her present back to Rio, making and obvious, “look at my face”- gesture, snapping her fingers mockingly, just like he had done to her a week before.

“We’ve cleaned $105 000 so far.”

“Cool.” He nodded, looking a little baffled and impressed.

He hadn’t counting on them succeeding. In his line of work, depending a little bit on the what job he let other people carry out for him, loaning them money, knowing they wouldn’t succeed or be able to pay him back. That made them owe him favors and little by little they would get deeper, never being able to claw their way out if it.  
Beth owed him for life, but he had thought about, she’d be easier to handle if he could get the other two to owe him to.

Nodding to his guys he gave them a simple, “load it up”.

“You’re early.” She stated, he had said two weeks. When he ignored her she continued.

“Now you know we’re working on it, it’d help if you gave us a few extra days.”

He gave it some thought, _if_ they managed to wash all of it, that meant more money for him to invest. Also knowing it was a way for her to push back, not wanting to succumb, which settled it for him. Walking up to her, to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear, he stood so close he could feel her breath on him.

“No.” He turned around and left.

“Oh. My. God.” Annie stated.

“What?” Beth said innocently.

They exchanged looks, Annie looks at Beth, her eyes was saying “stop fucking with Gangfriend” and “you better not sleep with Gangfriend again”. Beth’s eyes were conveying “I’m not” and “I’ll never do that again.”

Changing the subject, “what are we going to do about the rest of the money?” Beth asked.

Ruby hold her hands up saying, “don’t look at me, this is your department.”

“We could rob another store,” Annie said.

“Or we could replace it with our other money.” Beth tried. “I mean, he doesn’t seem to know how we’ve stayed afloat this past year. It could just work.”

“Or he could also kill us when he finds out.” Ruby added.

This past year, they had developed their own little money business, not big, just enough to wash at their jobs and give them an extra bonus to their life.

Dean had royally fucked up her life.  
He stayed in their old house, they couldn’t afford to sell it. Beth had claimed she had an old aunt she’d forgotten about that she inherited money from, just as the divorce was settled. Giving her funds to buy her small house, that was the only time that had gone that big with their own money.

They only had $45 000 left to clean, they could warm up their old presses again, when Rio had showed up, they’d stopped making money immediately, but if he hadn’t caught on yet, they could get away with it.  
But if he knew, he rarely showed his hand, it wouldn’t be pretty.

Beth thought out loud, “We’re going to be given a 20% cut, that’s $30 000, meaning we only need $15 000 that’s legit. That’s pocket change.”

“From whose pockets?” Annie wondered.


	5. Killer Queen

When Rio resurrected, they had automatically decided to lay low and stop printing money. Maggie who was the wizard of detailing the bills had decided to lay low somewhere in South America. Claiming if she was going to lay low, she may as well do it in style. Maggie had never met Rio but heard enough about him to now she didn’t want to face him.  
They weren’t as quick as Maggie, but they managed to print up the money they needed.

It took some effort, but Beth needled Annie down to call Gregg. He had called Annie some weeks prior, asking if she wanted to volunteer Sadies school fundraiser, they were having a silent auction. She had laughed heartedly at his face, through her phone. To say he was surprised when she called to volunteer would be an understatement.

_Of course,_ he understood that she needed to bring Beth as support.

The days flew by and they were both stressed and worried about not washing enough money on time. Sadies school fundraiser was the day before collecting day. To smuggle the money inside, they strapped it with duct tape around Beths waist and stuffed as much as money they could in her bra. Using her old but nice looking maternity dress that were loose enough to hide her bigger figure.

Annie was freaking out. She wasn’t comfortable around the parents at Sadies new school. When she showed up with Beth, Annie was put a trash duty. Having a baby as a teen meant that other moms wouldn’t take her seriously. She refused to play pretend and try to fit in with the other moms.  
It didn’t help that Nany was starring daggers at her from across the room, with Gregg standing awkwardly by her side. In the end they decided to patch thing up and try to work on their marriage.

She could see that Beth mas mingling. Looking like she fit right in, Beth could be compared ta chameleon. Always did what it takes to fit in, lies rolling of her tongue without batting an eye.   
Standing with a group of parents, talking about how she and her ex-husband was thinking of transferring her four children to St Annes. Describing the various committees she’d been involved in through out the years, spreading it on thick, knowing if she ever wanted to transfer her kids, she didn’t though, she’d need the recommendation and this was the way to do it.   
She was just _that good_ at working a crowd.

Annie walked up to her grabbed her with one hand and carrying a trash bag in the other.

“Beth.” She nodded acknowledge to the group and then to Beth, “quick word please.”

“Sure, sis’.”

“What’s up, Annie?”

“Are you kidding me, what are you doing?”

“Working the crowd.”

“How are we gonna’ swap the money, if I’m on trash duty and your chatting with the rooms crème de la crème?”

“I’ve got it.”

“How have you got it?”

“I’ll volunteer, now they know what I can do and who I am, it’ll be fine.”

“Well, I don’t want to collect other peoples trash anymore.”

“So don’t, take a break, have some wine, when the silent auction is over, I’ll volunteer. Come on, wine!”

Annie had more than a little wine. Beth volunteered to help with the count, claiming she was normally the one organizing the auctions.   
From there it was easy- peasy exchanging the money, when she found Annie, chatting up a dad, she dragged her out. Annie crawled in the backseat of her car, whatever was in her way she pushed off the seat, settling down, it didn’t take long until she was asleep.

Beth could hear her soft snoring when she drove and that she was mumbling something that sounded like she was talking about kittens.

“Tickle,tickle, iiiih, tickle-tickle-iiiiiiih. Cute kitty-cat.” She mumbled and sighing softly.

Waking her up when they reached her house, using the nickname that had been reserved for Annie when she was growing.

“Bubba, come on, we need to get inside and go to bed.” She stroked her hair softly.

After coaching her, she managed to convince her to follow her inside, even if her first reaction was, she could sleep in her car.   
Tucking Annie in her bed, she then counted the cash, packed the duffel bags, you never knew when Rio would show up.   
Walking around, turning off the lights and checking her doors a last time before she joined Annie in bed.  
It didn’t take long until they were both were asleep side by side.

When Beth woke up, the suns rays were shining in her eyes, she had been sure she had closed the blinds the night before. Sometime during the night, she and Annie had kicked the duvets down on the floor.   
Sleeping in the same bed Annie was like sleeping with a personal fireplace in bed. She snuggled up like she always had, since she’d been a baby. Beth on her stomach with Annies head tucked in her armpit, her tee had ridden up, showing her underwear and lower back.

She froze when she heard someone clear their throat, they weren’t alone.

“Wakey, wakey, eggs and bakey.” Rios voice were low, but it still startled her.

She tugged at her shirt as she untangled her from Annie. When she turned around, Rio was sitting on her step stool across from the bed. Two of his boys were leaning against the wall, looking anywhere but on her and Annie. That made her feel a bit grateful. They looked as uncomfortable as she felt, she grabbed the duvet from the floor, hiding Annie under it.

All while Rio sat on the step, watching her with interest.

“Get out,” she hissed at him and tried to locate a pair of pajama pants.

“Oh come on hun’, nothing I haven’t seen.” Giving her his lopsided grin.

Waking up confused and sleepy, there hadn’t been room for feeling anything, trying to get her brain to catch up. But now she found herself getting furious.

“Well, _babe_ ,” she said dripping with sarcasm,

“get the fuck out while I put on some clothes.” She shout- hissed, making her throat feel raw.

She caught the flicker off surprise at his boys, they were probably not used to anyone talking to Rio that way.  
Rio did that thing with his jaw, when he started getting pissed and his eyes hardened as he rose and motioned for his guys to follow him.

Taking her time, putting on a bra and choosing to put some shorts on, she peed and washed her face, put some make up on (war paint, she concluded) and brushed her teeth. She had half a mind to climb down in bed again, but decided against it, she wouldn’t put it passed Rio to physically drag her out of it.

Entering the kitchen, she could her them talking in hushed voices, that quieted down the instant she entered. Deciding that since Rio had decided to show up 7:30 on a Saturday she would play hostess before getting him his money, counting on getting a rise out of him.   
She sauntered over to the coffee machine and turned around to look at them, finding herself in a starring contest with Rio, almost like he was daring her.

“Who wants pancakes and bacon?” Putting on her sweetest mom voice.

It took some convincing, but Rio honestly hadn’t put up that much of a fight, she was almost too easy to read sometimes. He had woken her up, she’d gotten furious and was punishing him by making breakfast.   
Serving them coffee and then Beth asked the young Hispanic, Alex, she found out his names was, to help with setting the plates and getting the syrup.   
It had surprised her when he had said,

“Anything else, Miss Marks?”

“That’s fine, thank you.”

She hadn’t given much thought to what Rio or his boys called them when they talked about them. He always said Elizabeth to her, called Annie “sister” and Ruby “friend”. Well, sometimes he called her other things as well.

They ate under silence, then she retrieved the bags. Rios guys counted it, then they stood up to leave.

“What about our cut?” She wondered.

“I’ll be back with it later.”

“This is not usually the way we do things.”

“We didn’t used to do things this way, but things change, right?”

This morning had been good, almost like what happened never had happened, but the hardness was back in his eyes now.  
When they walked out of her house. All she could think was, _fuck_ , this was not going the way she’d planned.


	6. Bullet proof

Rio liked to rattle Elizabeth. Showing up in her bedroom waking her up, _fun._ Have his boys flank him while doing it, _even more fun._ They’d never dare to say ‘no’ to him.

He could tell that it unnerved her that he decided to bring their cut back later. After showing up and taking their washing back early, after being impressed, pushing her more. Just ‘cause he wanted to.

She still hadn’t come clean about cooking up her own money. After breakfast, after his boys had counted the money, after her eyes got all twitchy and nervous as shit.  
He got it, he could just read her and the more he thought about it, it would be so fuckin’ _predictable._ Cooking up money pretending that she’d manage to wash all his cash.

Retreating, needing to think things over. Finding a good angle to push her, _rattle her._

Seeing her ass displayed in bed like that, he hadn’t counted in that. Thinking she’d be in her Victorian jammies. Not in blue underwear. _She managed to fuck with him and not even realizing it._

Dags is waiting in his car when Rio slide in the passenger seat.

“We need to go see Kevin.” He says staring ahead.

“A’ight, Boss.”

Dags was a no-nonsense guy, except when he’d a few. They waited for the younger ones to load the trunk before they sped off.

“This is some fine shit.”

Kevin was a young guy of Jamaican heritage, dreads down to his waist with a knitted beanie on top. He had been Rio to- go- guy when it came to refine the art of making money. He just had a knack for it.  
All Rio could do was nod at him.

_Fuckin’ Elizabeth._

He decides to show up later, guns blazing and what not. Well not blazing but waving at least. With Dags in tow, he had heard his boys call her Miss Marks earlier. Giving her a shit ton of respect, she hadn’t earned. It makes him more ticked off just thinking about it.

Deciding to come through the front door, the scene in front of him wasn’t what he had expected. She and her sister standing in her living room, bourbon in hand dancing to some shit _awful,_ _loud_ music.

He’d dragged out showing up, hoping it would get on her nerves.

When sister sees him, she exclaims far too happily, “Gangfriend!”

The jam Elizabeth been rocking stills and becomes more of a small swaying. The way forty- something suburban moms dance.  
He and Dags stand back, him relaxed against a wall watching, Dags like a guard dog. Sometimes it feels like they are playing _good cop- bad cop_. Ever since she had Rio arrested, Dags don’t understand why she’s still breathing. Or he does, and that annoys him just as much.

He motions with the gun in his hand, for them to turn down the music. Clocking the way their eyes follow the movement of his gun, they’re wary, but not frightened.

“A funny thing happened,” he starts.

“I’ve cooked money for some time now, I’ve got a good eye for it. Still you thought it would be a good idea to try and scam me.”

In his peripheral he sees her sister swallowing, knowing they’ve been caught. Elizabeth isn’t even fazed, making him wonder how good of an actress she really is. His good a reading rooms, it helps for staying alive, and he knows that she is too.

“Sit.”

Hesitantly they do as they are told.

“Where is it?”

She nods at the mudroom.

Motioning for Dags to retrieve. When Dags come back with twice as much money all he can do is laugh.

He laughs heartedly, like he hasn’t laughed in a long time. In the corners of his eyes he can feel the beginning of tears.

That seems to unsettle them at least.

“Are you fucking kidding me!?” Now he’s in her face, pressing the gun under her chin.

“You think you can play me, still?” All traces of laughter are gone and all he feels is fury.

Defiantly she holds his gaze. She knows he can’t kill her.

“You know what sweetheart, fuck you.”

It pisses him off that she seems to take him with stride, _she_ rattles him.

He’s leaving with all the money. He needs to get away.

When he’s back in the car, behind the steering wheel he starts throwing punches. Breaking the mirror before he stops with knuckles that hurts. His chest is heaving and his talking gulps of breath, and Dags slips in and just looks at him. He takes a moment before he drives off.

When he’s back home, in his new apartment he pulls on some sweatpants, a t- shirt that’s been worn out too much, with holes under his armpits. Plugging his earplugs in, turning up the volume he starts his run in the quiet of the neighborhood. He doesn’t stop running until his drenched in sweat and he’s emptying his stomach from the fatigue.

His not good on his own, never seeming to be able to turn his mind off.

Slowly, picking himself up, he makes his way home. He’s reeking and his clothes are wet from sweat, the mild breeze gives him goosebumps.  
Looking at his surroundings he realizes his close to Rhea, she’s gonna’ hate him for it, but not hate- hate him.

  
He raps his knuckles on her bedroom window, at first, he thought about ringing the doorbell but decided against it.  
She lives in a small house with a small backyard, when he had to move, so did she. Not wanting to take any chances.  
He knocks again.

“What the fuck Christopher.”

Groggy and angry, taking him in, he stinks of sick and sweat. She closes the window before he has the chance to answer and then she’s by the front door opening it and letting him in.  
She’s too tired to talk about it tonight, so she simple hands him some of her boyfriends clothes and a towel, hoping he’ll take the hint.  
He does, exhaustions in his limb is making it hard for him to stay upright in the shower as it washes his sins from the day away.

Toweling himself off and putting on clean clothes, he snuggles down in bed with his little human.  
Just looking at him makes his heart swell and he can’t believe how lucky he is.

His mind slows down, and he drifts as he listens to his exhales.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you guys think of Rios P.O.V.? 
> 
> More or less of Rios view of things?


	7. Make me feel

Beth doesn’t see Rio for a while.

One night she’s in the kitchen having a late snack after a long day, washing it down with bourbon when he slips in.  
They just stand at opposite ends of the kitchen observing one another.

She sips on her glass of bourbon and he’s chewing on his lip.

“Why did you do it?”

“You don’t want to hear my excuses.”

“Maybe I do.”

“That’ll be a change.”

She sighs and thinks about it. She’ll tell him, knowing it won’t satisfy him.

“I needed the money for bills. Annie needs money for bills and Ruby needs money for bills. When you resurrected, we,” she trails of searching for the right words.

“We took a break from business.”

“Don’t carman pay you alimony?”

That makes her huff, “No he doesn’t.”

He looks, not angry but not pleased. Not with anything she’s told him, just like she knew.  
Looking like he wants to say something, but not finding the right words, she waits a beat then,

“What?”

“Why did you marry him?”

Avoiding her gaze and doing a slight shift as he stands there, she wonders if he hadn’t meant to ask.

“Honestly? I’m not sure. But he was kind,” she stares out to her garden. “My parents were, flaky.” Searching for words, exposing a little but not too much. “He seemed like anything but. He said he’d take care of me. I never really had that.”

She stops to mull her words over. “Are you mad?”

“Yes.”

She do get that.

Then he’s in her space, catching a strand of hair, tugging on it a little before sliding his hand in her hair, taking a handful. Pulling her towards him, he kisses her. It’s sweet but an angry kiss.

Walking backwards, pulling her along, he pushes her down on the couch pressing down on her.  
Slow kisses on her mouth, then he’s kissing his way down, undressing her and leaving wet kisses.  
When she’s down to her panties, he cups her breast and holds them, kissing the top of them and breathing her in. He holds them in his hand like his hand are supporting her like bra. Molding them into shapes and kisses them.

“Aren’t you to old to play with boobies?” She asks with a hint of smile and sarcasm.

“I’ll never be to old for these.” Not taking his eyes of them.

She can’t help that it sounds like a promise.

He’s kissing her mouth again. It’s her turn to undress him, leaving kisses as she does.

When they’re both in the underwear, he takes her hand and stands her up, before bending her over the armrest. Taking of her underwear, he bites lightly on one cheek before pulling her panties down. Still slow but angry, he grunts and kisses her back, an arm under her knee to give good access. When his nearly there he pauses. Lets her go but stays inside.

“Close them.”

Keeping her legs tight, he starts pushing in and out of her again, slow but less angry. Softer kisses on her back. It feels like forgiveness.

When they’re done, they clean themselves up in the kitchen and then he dresses.

“You didn’t come.”

“It’s fine.” And it is, it doesn’t mean it wasn’t good for her, she just needs more.

She’s still naked when he’s all dressed up, sipping some water she asks,

“Do you want to stay?”

“Yes.” Nodding, avoiding her gaze, he walks out of her house.

_Baby, don't make me spell it out for you_  
_All of the feelings that I've got for you_  
_Can't be explained, but I can try for you_  
_Yeah, baby, don't make me spell it out for you_  
_You keep on asking me the same questions (why?)_  
_And second guessing all my intentions_  
_Should know by the way I use my compression_  
_That you've got the answers to my confessions_

_It's like I'm powerful with a little bit of tender_  
_An emotional, sexual bender_  
_Mess me up, yeah, but no one does it better_  
_There's nothin' better_

_That's just the way you make me feel_  
_That's just the way you make me feel_  
_So real, so good, so fuckin' real_  
_That's just the way you make me feel_  
_That's just the way you make me feel_

Make me feel, Janelle Monáe

**Author's Note:**

> Don't have a beta and I'm writing in my second language.  
> Love feedback!


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